Edits

9 Favourite Ethical Fashion Labels

Posted on 23 March 2016

Ethical and sustainable fashion is experiencing something of a renaissance. It is shedding its heavy hemp fisherman pant skin and what’s underneath is pretty darn good lookin’. Big name brands are becoming more and more ethical in their production and supply chains, but what is most interesting is the labels popping up around the world, equal parts avant garde style and ethical manufacturing ethos.

Naturally, we spend a bit of time hunting around for the best maternity friendly labels that are ethical, and it’s been pretty difficult to find what we’ve been looking for in the vast internet at times, we must admit.

Along the way we have discovered some pretty great labels that are paving the New Ethical way, combining great styles and transparent supply chains .

A Swedish sustainable fashion label that is challenging the conventional norms. They make their super hip contemporary styles out of dead stock- that’s fashion speak for the reams of textiles have been bought by other labels and never used, or textiles used in designs that were never sold. Basically Bite Studios is solving the landfill crisis in fashion, one great pair of shorts at a time. Our favourite? We are loving Bite’s sharp take on their Esther H Summer dress.

Sleep soundly in the knowledge you are doing no harm in these PJs. Sydney based A.L.A.S makes organic cotton sleepwear in great prints and super cool cuts. This is not your Nanna’s nightie - who knew pyjamas could look so good?! Everything they design and create is organic and ethically manufactured, with a strong belief behind the brand that as designers they ‘have a responsibility to respect the planet, and to respect the people involved in making our garments.’ All things made by ALAS have a transparent supply chain, so you know exactly where it is made and how. Our favourite? The jumpsuit pjs, and undies. Now you can be head to toe ethical!

This Melbourne based label is putting out some of the finest ready to wear street styles we have laid our eyes on. The fact they’re all ethically manufactured just makes us love them more. Think wide leg culottes in French jacquard, dreamy tees in soft-as-silk cotton and midi dresses that flatter all shapes. We can’t get enough of Kuwaii’s dresses.

Black Crane has its roots in Japanese design, and is based in Los Angeles. Everything produced by this minimal, edgy brand is made locally in LA, even the textiles. This is a complete California supply chain, and the results are clean, modern designs that flatter any form. Black Crane can be hard to come by online, check out their stockists to find out where you might go on the hunt. Black Crane’s Spring 2016 dresses are something of a dream.

Beyond Skin is the UK based ‘genuinely not leather’ design house challenging us all to question whether we really need to walk around with leather shoes on. We know leather treatment is one of the most environmentally impactful of all processes in fashion, and now we have no excuse to contribute to the problem. Beyond Skin have fabulous pumps, sunny sandals and the finest loafers we ever did see. Loving their take on the copper loafer this year.

This is high end ready to wear fashion, with some seriously stylish design. Honest by. Bruno Pieters calls itself the world’s first 100% transparent company, and each season the company publishes its entire supply chain for every product it creates and translates this into total price transparency. Pretty amazing given this industry for the most part is cloak and dagger when it comes to mark ups. All hail Honest By. for its avant garde style and tailored flair. There are too many things to love here, simply revel in the design and style - proof that ethical doesn’t fly in the face of design prowess.

With flattering cuts, luxury textiles and richness of colour, Maiyet are pretty much the queens of luxury ready to wear styles when it comes to ethical fashion. The New York based luxury label partners with artisans around the world in places like India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Mongolia, Peru, Bolivia, and Thailand to create hand crafted designs. The word here is luxury people, hand crafted luxury! We love everything about Maiyet, but especially their bags - see? Told ya.

Les Sublimes is French for super-soft-luxurious-comfy-as-wardrobe-essentials, made in France of course. This brand new label supports the education of girls with their profits, every time you buy a piece of clothing from Les Sublimes they support a girl in poverty to attend school for a month. Super soft tees, stretchy dresses and comfy long sleeve numbers, this label is launching soon and we are about to fall in love, Paris style.

So there you have it, labels we love and are inspired by and we are proud to hold ethical standards in fashion at the same level as these brands.